Assionob to bemis bbo



July 3, 1928. 1,675,400

R. L. YOUNG APPARATUS FOB AND METHOD OF SPLICING MULTIPLY THREAD Filed Feb. l2, 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet l July 3, 192s. f 1,675,400

R. L. YOUNG APPARATUS FOR AND METHOD OF SPLICING MULTIPLY THREAD Filed Feb. 12, 1926 2 sheets-sheet 2 M ylwtff Arme/wey Patented July 3, y19.28.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

'RAYMOND L. 'YoUNeg or s'r. Louis, ms'soum, AssIGNoa 'ro nmns Bao. 'BAG oo., or .sn Louis, Missionar. A conformaron or mssounr.

r Y J i v APPARATUS FOB AND METHOD F SPLICING MULTIPLY THREAD.

Application l'ed February ratus whereby the plies of two threads can be untwisted and separated 'and then the separated plies tied to ether in such a manner that they will all e of the same length with the knots 'of the plies separated lon itudinally so that, lupon the restoration of t e twist to the separated plies, the spliced portion will be smooth.

Heretofore .in winding thread on' cones or spools a greater amount of thread was placed on the cone or spool than was on the bobbin which `came from the twisting machine and in order to get the roper amount of thread on the cone or spoo it was necessary to use several bobbins 'of thread, therefore when one bobbin was empty, another bobbin was employed andthe loose ends either merely lapped over/each other or else tied together in *a square knot. Inthe instance ofthe lapped` ends, when these ends were reached in a sewing machine, the thread ran out of the eye of the needle or looper and necessitated rethreading, whereas with the uare knot it was-of such a size that it coul not pass through the needle or'looper eye .and consequently the thread had to be cut and rethreading was necessary. yThis caused ay considerable waste of time as well as very often spoiling the work or necessitating the ripping-outof a sewed portion. B my ini-` proved methoda cone or spool can e entirely run oiand without any necessity of either 'cutting thethread orl rethreadilig the needle. f In` the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view of my device showing the manner of separating the plies byA untwisting and the manner of tying the .same so that the tied plies will all be of the same length.;

Fig? 2f`s a side elevation of the same ;.v

. Fig. 3 isy an enlarged ragmental section .of vone ofthe untwisting drums;

Fig. 4 is an end view of the vsame illus-A ,t-ra'ting the manner of locking the thread therein;

12, 1926. Serial No. 87,750.

Fig. 5 is an end view of thedrum with the 'locked plate removed;

Fig-6 is a top plan view oi the front and of the lockingdrum; s

Fig.- 7 is an enlarged fragmental section of one of the thread holding plates;

Fig. 8 is a face view of the same;

Fig. 9 is an enlarged side view ofrone of the guide posts em loyed;

F1g.'10 is a top p an view of the same;

Fig. 11 is an enlarged fragmental view of the upper end of one of the spacers;

Fig. 12 is a diagrammatic view of a number of separated plies illustratin the manner in which the knots are space and Fig. 13 is an enlarged view of a section of the thread including the splice.

` In the construction of my device, I employ a base 13. This base has considerable weight so that lthere will `be no danger of the apparatus upsetting. The base 13 is mounted on swivel rollers 14 so that the device can be readily movedfrom place `to place; Extending upward from the base is a column 15 which has a supporting member 16 secured to its upper end. Mounted on the supporting member 16 is a table 17. Secured to the underside of the table are bearin s 18 in which a shaft 19 is rotatably mounte The rear end of the shaft 19 is provided with a handle or crank 20 by means of which the shaft can bevrotated. Mounted -on the shaft 19 and at its forward end is` a gear..

21. This gear extends through a slot 22 in the table. Mounted 0n the upper face of the table and adjacent each side edge are supports 23 which have their upper ends open or slotted as at\24f. The purpose of this will be explained in detail later.

Mounted in the bearings 23 are unwinding drums V,25 which have gears 26a located thereon. These gears are between adjacent bearings 23 and mesh with the gear 21 s0 that when the handle 2O is turned the unwinding drumsjwill be rotated. The 'unwinding drumsv are each provided with a longitudinally extending slot or groove 26 of sufficient depth so that, when a thread Alies therein, it will be below the bottom of the gear teeth ofthe gears 26a so that there will be no possibility ofthe thread coming in .Contact with Ithe gears during their rotation. The unwinding drums have a portion of their ends cut away as indicated by the numeral 27. This cut away portion extends slightly beyond the center ot" the drum, (see Figs. 5 and 6) leaving an extending portion 28. The extending portion 28 is provided with screw threaded bores 29 for the -reception of screws 30 by means of which the plates 31 and 31a can be attached to the yunwinding drums. The plates 31 and 31 are provided with a notch 32 which acts as a thread guide and which is in alignment with the slot 26 and also with a diametrically opposite slot 33. This slot extends radially and terminates adjacent the center or axis of the drum 25.

Carried by the top 17 and directly to the rear of the unwinding drums 25 are posts 34 on which are mounted thread holding plates 35 and 36. The thread holding plate 35 is fixed to its post by means of a pin so that it can not rotate, while the thread holdin plate 36 is provided with a handle 37 so t at it can be rotated. The handle 37 carries a stud 38 which passes through the support 34.l It is also provided with a pin 39 which is adapted to enter a recess 40 in the rear of the support for holding the thread plate against rotation. The stud 38 is rovlded with a square portion 41 on whlch is mounted a disk or plate 42 and with a screw threaded portion 43. On this screw threaded ortion is mounted a plate 44 which is held) against independent rotation by means of a pin 45 which passes through the plates 42 and 44. The plate 44 is held in contact with the plate 42 by means of a coil spring 46 which surrounds the screw threaded portion 43 and which is pressed against the plate 45 by means of the screw threaded sleeve 47. The plate 48 of the thread holding plate 35 is held in position in a similar manner, that is it is held against rotation by means of a pin and also spring-pressed against the plate 35 in the same manner that the plate 44 is pressed. The plates 44 and 48 are each provided with a projecting lip 49 adjacent which is a slot 50, the purpose of which will be explained in detail later.

are tied, as illustrated in Fig. 1, the length of all the tied plies will be exactly the same.

This is essential because, if the plies were' not of equal length, it would, be impossible to make a smooth splice. The upper end of each of the guide osts is round and tapered oil as at 57. xtending through Larnaca the guide posts and projecting toward the rear of the machine are U shaped supports 5S which are for the purpose of supporting the threads and assuring that all will be tied at a point the saine distance above the table to and practically in horizontal alignment with the thread as it issues from the rear of the unwinding drum. Each post is also provided with a spring 59 on its rear side which enters between the arms of the supports 58. This s ring is for the purpose of olding `the first not tied in the pllesand preventing it from slipping. Were this knot permitted to slip, it would be'im ossible to get' all the tied plies the same length.

The operation of my device is as follows: 60 represents the cone which'is being wound and 61 the bobbin as it comes fromthe twisting machine, 62 the thread leadin from the 'cone and 63 the thread from t e bobbin.

When the ends of these threads are to be spliced, a predetermined amount of thread the untwistng drum and brought upwardv between' the drum and late 315, threaded and then passed throng the slot 26, and then downward through the space 27. It is then brought around the solid porton 28 of. the drum over the portion of the thread already in the slot 27 and u ward throu h the slot 33 in the plate 31. n this way t e portion 64 of each thread is tightly clamped and prevented from sli ping. The handle 20 is then rotated in a direction so that the thread will be twisted in a direction o posits to the thread twist thereby untwistlng the separate plies and permitting them to ibe separated. The separated plies are held iin spaced apart position by means of the spacer. Should 1t occur that one of the threads 1intwists more readily than the other, the balance of the untwistin is taken care of y means of the handle 3 so that the plies pf both threads can be readily separated. One ply from each thread is then broken lofise a jacent the holding platesand without letting o of these plies, a single knotf is tied and t e ply thus tied with the single knot slipped over the post 53l until it rests on the support 58. The knot thus formed ILis held by the spring 59 against slip ing and a second knot tied in the ply. X second ply is then broken loose from each of the threads and tied in a similar manner around the post 54, the next pl around the post 55,

and the last ply aroun the post 56.` Before tying these plies, however.l they are removed from the spacer so that all of the plies will center at the plates 31a secured at the rear of the untwisting drums. It Will be noted that the posts 53, 54, 55 and 56 are arranged on an ellipse, the focii of which are at 31. The urpose of this arrangement is to'permit t e plies when tied to be all of the same length. In othergwords the plies ofthe threads when tied form two sides of a'giangle, all of which sides are of equal length so that, when the thread, after being spliced is straightened out, all of the plies are of equa] length. 4

After the various plies have been thus tied and the ends cut off, they are removed from the posts, and the handle rotated in the opposite direction thus takin out the twist which has been put into the t reads 62 and 63 by untwisting the plies and restoring it to the tied plies. After this the thread is removed from the untwisting drums and the additional twist still remaining in threads 62 and 63, and equivalent to the twist which was originally in that portion of the 'thread cut oi after tying the respective ply knots, will automatically distribute and adjust itself throughout the length of the spliced portion. Inthis way it is believed on account of the shortening of the thread that it-will become more. tightly twisted at the spliceand thereby have a tendency to imbed the knots tied in separate plies in the plies adjacent to the knots. vAt all events, I,have discovered that a thread composed of a number of -plies can be spliced by my method without materially increasing the size or diameter of the thread at the splice so that the splice will pass through the eye of a sewing needle as readily as the remainder of the thread.

Another particular advantage of my method of splicing the thread is `that not alone is the diameter of the thread at the splice maintained substantially uniform but, by reason of staggering or separatin the union between the various plies', the t read is not weakened at the splice nor is there any danger of the thread separating at the splice for the reason that the connecting points of the various plies are so widely distributed relative to the diameter of the thread that they do not form a weak link in the chain.

It is to be understood, of course, that prior` to removing the tied plies from the supports or guide posts, the free ends of the plies are trimmed short and fairly close to the knots so that there will be no long loose ends sticking out from the thread after the plies have been twisted together. i

, The purpose of the drums 25 is primarily to serve as a means for carrying t e thread past the pinions 26a and in connection with the plates 31 and 31 present the threads 62 and 63 from being thrown into the meshes of the gears 26a as these threads kink dur-l ing the untwisting operation preparator to splicing and, if .these kinks were not eld away from the pinions, they would be drawn into the ears and be cut or tangled therein. It' is a so obvious thatmydevice Gambe used for splicing threads of any number of plies, it, of course, being necessary that the numberlof guide posts around which the untwisted plies are tied correspond in number to the lplies of the thread to be spliced.

Having fully described my invention,

1. The method of splicing multiplyl threads which consists in clamping the free ends of parallel spaced apart horizontally extending threads to prevent the same from untwisting, imparting to each thread 'at points equally removed from the application of said clamping a rotary movement for removing the -twlst of said threads and to permit the plies thereof to be separated, arranging the plies of one vthread 1n pairs with the plies of another thread, uniting by individually tying together the pairs of plies at longitudinall -spaced apart points without destroying t e twist in the plies, partially restoring the twist in said threads, removing said threads at their point of rotation, and, lastly, automatically restoring the remainder of the twist to the thread.

2. rlhe method of splicing multiply threads which consists in extending the end portions of two threads from separate what I claim is:

sources of supply horizontally and in par- `,cally restoring the twist so removed to said plies.

3. The method of splicing multiply threads which consists in clamping and holding at laterally spaced apart points the free ends of two horizont-ally parallel threads so as to prevent the same from rotating, simultaneously imparting to said threads at points equally removed from the application of said clamping a rotary move- .ment for removing sufficient twist from the body of said threads to permit the plies thereof to be separated, uniting by individually tying together lthe plies of one thread to the plies of the other thread so that the knots will be longitudinally spaced and the united plies be of equal length and, lastly, removing said threads from their vrotating points and restoring the previously removed twist to the thread automatically.'

tion, which consists :in untwisting 4and separating the plies of equal lengths pf the Atwo threads, uniting the individual plies of one thread to the individual plies of the other thread without losing the twist in the individual plies so that the united plies will be of equal length and, lastly, removing said threads from their rotating points thereby automatically restoring the twist in the thread, which has been previously removed, so that the spliced portion will be more tightly twisted than the remainder of the thread.

5. The method of splicing multiply threads which consists in untwisting and separating the plies of equal lengths of two threads, uniting by tying the individual plies of one thread to the individual plies of the other thread without losing the twist in said threads so that the tied plies will be of equal length and the knots occasioned by such tying spaced longitudinallyof the thread and, lastly, releasing said threads from their starting points thereby automatically restoring the twist .in the thread whereby the spliced portion will have a twist slightly greater than the remainder of the thread. i

6. The method of splicing multiply threads which consists insecuring two parallel threads adjacent their ends, unt-wisting the plies of said threadsfor a predetermined portion adjacent the secured ends and simultaneously transferring the twist so taken out to adjacent unt'wisted portions of each thread, separating the pliesl of each untwisted portion, breaking one ply ofeach thread and tying said plies together without losing the twist therein, repeat-ing the tying portion until all of said plies are secured together in such a manner that said pairs of plies are of equal length and with the ,knots uniting said plies longitudinally spaced, retwisting said plies together so as to partially return the twist previously removed, and then releasing said threads thereby permitting the twist transferred to the untwisted portion to automatically run into the spliced portion whereby said spliced portion becomes twisted tighter than the remainder of said thread.

7. The method of splicing multiply threads which consists in securing two horizontally parallel threads adjacent their ends against movement, untwisting a predetermined equal length of-each of said threads adjacent their ends and simultaneously transferring said twist to an adjacent untwisted portion of each'thread, separating the plies of the untwisted portion of each thread, breaking and tying one ply of one thread to a ply of the other thread and without losing the twist in said plies and continuing the tying operation until all of the plies are united together in such a manner that all of said plies are of equal length and the knots joining said plies s viaced longitudinally, trimming the ends o the plies adjacent the knots, partially restoring the twist to the tied plies, which has been previously removed, and then releasing said threads thereby permitting the remainder of the removed twist to automatically pass to the spliced portion whereby the spliced portion will be twisted tighter than the ,remainder of the thread.

8. An appara-tus for multiply threads comprising a table, a roller Support for said table, unwinding drums carried by and along one edge of said table, means for securing a thread to each of said drums, means for holding said threads adjacent their endsl against rotation so that the same can be 11ntwisted and the plies thereof separated, bifurcated means adjacent the unwinding drums for holding said plies in separated position` means carried by the table and located between the unwinding drums whereby the length of the plies and the position of the knots for securing the plies of the threads together is regulated, and means for rotating the unwinding drums in opposite directions for twisting and untwisting said threads, said threads adapted to be removed from the. unwinding drums without returning the drums to their initial position.

9. An apparatus for splicing multiply threads comprising a table, means located at the rear of said table and adjacent each side for securing and holding the ends of threads against rotation, means located adjacent the forward edge of said plate and adapted to have the threads pass therethrough and be secured thereto, means for placing said last mentioned means in rotation whereby the thread between the first and second mentioned means is untwisted so that the plies canbe separated, and spaced apart means carried by said table and adapted to act as guides so that the plies of one ofthe threads can be singly tied to the plies of the other thread and all of the plies when tied be of uniform lenfrth.

10. An apparatus or` splicing multiply threads comprising a table, means located at the rear of said table and adjacent each side for holding the ends of two threads against rotation, means located adjacent the forward edge of said plate and adapted to have the threads pass therethrough and be secured thereto, means for placing said last mentioned means in rotation whereby the threads between the first and second mentioned means are untwisted so that the plies can be separated, spaced apart means carried by said table and adapted to act as guides so that the plies of one of the threads can be singly tied to the plies of the other thread and all of the plies when tied lbe of uniform length, and means at the rear edge of said table whereby one of said threads can be rotated so as to additionally untwist the j plies thereof in the event the threads untwist unequally.

l1. An apparatus for splicing multiply threads comprising a table, a support for said table, unwinding drums carried by said table, means for securing a thread intermediate its ends to each of said drums, means for rotating said drums, means for securing and holding said threads adjacent one of their ends against rotation so that the same can be untwisted and the plies thereof separated, means for holding said plies in separated position, spaced apart means elliptically arranged carried by the table whereby the length Aof the plies and the position of the knots for securing the plies of thc threads together is regulated, and means for equalizing the untwisting of said drums.

l2. An apparatus for splicing multiply threads comprising a table, a, roller support for said table, unwinding drums rotatably carried by said table, a gear carried by each .of said drums intermediate their ends, a

driving gear carried by said table and meshing with said drum gears for rotating said drums simultaneously, each of said drums being provided with a longitudinal slot so that a thread lying therein will be below the base of the gear teeth, means carried by the ends of each of said drums for aligning and locking a thread carried thereby with the axis of rotation of said drums, means for rotating said driving gear, means for holding a portion of said threads against rotation whereby the same can be untwisted and the plies separated, and means adjacent the unwinding drums for holding the plies in separated osition.

13. n apparatus for splicing multiply threads comprising a table, a support for said table, unwinding drums provided with a longitudinal slot rotatably carried by said table, gear teeth formed on said drums intermediate their ends, means located on the end of each of said drums whereby a thread lying in said slot can be clamped, said means also centering the projecting portions of the thread with the axis of rotation of said drums, a gear wheel carried by said table and meshing with the gear teeth on the drums for placing the same in rotation simultaneously, means for rotatingk said last mentioned gear, and means for holding one portion of said threads against rotation whereby the same can be untwisted and the plies separated.

14. The apparatus of claim 13.in which supporting posts are provided by'means of which the separated plies of one thread can Aofisupply, separating the untwisted plies,

be individually tied to individual plies of another thread in such a manner that the tied plies will all be of equal length.

15. In a machine of the class described an unwinding drum composed of a cylindrical body provided with a longitudinal slot, a gear carried by said cylindrical body, and a slotted plate mounted against each end of said cylindrical body, a portion of each plate being spaced from the ends of said cylindrical body whereby a thread can be secured to said cylindrical body and extend from each end thereof in alignment with the axis of the cylindrical body.

16. .ln a machine of the class described an unwinding drum composed of a cylindrical body having gear teeth intermediate its ends and provided with! a longitudinal slot of greater depth than the base of said teeth, a portion of each end of the drum being cut away so as to form a shoulder, and a slotted plate secured again each end of said drum, ysaid slot being out of alignment with the slot in the drum, and having its bottom coincident with the axis of the drum, whereby a thread is secured within said slot with its ends projecting in alignment with the axis of the drum.

17. The method of splicing multiply threads which consist in holding the free ends of two separate sources of supply against rotation,` imparting to said threads at points equally removed fromy where they are held and intermediate the ends and the sources of supply a rotar movement for removing the twist from t e threads between the points of rotation and the ends so that the plies can be separated, and simultaneously therewith transferring the twist so removed to the portion of the threads between the points of rotation and the sources tying one ply of one thread to a ply the other thread without destroying the twist 'in the individual plies, continuing said tying operation till all of the plies of one thread have been united to the plies of the other thread in such a manner that the knots at the points of tying will be longitudinally spaced apart and thecombined length of the united plies be less than-the combined length of the original length of said plies, trimming the projected ends of the plies close to the knots, rotating the threads in the opposite direction for partially restoring a portion of the transferred twist to the spliced portion, releasing said threads at their points of rotation, and, lastly, permitting the remainder of the transferred twist to distribute itself to the threads between the two sources of supply.

In testimony whereof I have aliixed my signature.

RAYMOND L. YOUNG. 

